A Much Needed Apology (Or:How Regina Mills Punched a Girl In The Face)
by Ash M. Knight
Summary: Ruby convinces Regina to go to a haunted house on Halloween. Inside, Regina panics and punches one of the actresses in the face. Now she owes the girl a big apology. Cutesy SwanQueen one-shot.


"No way," Regina asserted. "We're not going out to get hammered. That is _so _immature."

"Alright, fine. Haunted house then!"

"Ruby!" the older brunette cried. "We are _not _going to a haunted house!"

"Of course we are! What else would we do on Halloween?"

"I don't know! Carve pumpkins! Pass out candy! Dress up as witches! I don't _know! _Just not that!"

With a shrug of her shoulders, Ruby let out an exaggerated sigh and slipped into the driver's side of her car.

"You gonna get in or what?" the other girl asked, looking out the open window at her friend as she crossed her arms defiantly. "We might as well just go home if you're going to be a party pooper."

"God dammit, Ruby! I'm not a party pooper!"

"Get in the fucking car, loser."

"UGH! Fine! You're still obnoxious, though."

The car headed towards 108 Mifflin Street, but as it neared the mansion, a few streets prior, Ruby made a sharp right and pushed down harder on the pedal.

"What are you _doing?_" Regina asked, exasperated by her friend's reckless driving.

"Having fun. Ever heard of it?"

"Are you drunk? Slow down before you get us killed or hurt someone else! Or even worse, you get us pulled over!"

"I love that you think getting pulled over is worse than dying," Ruby laughed. "Anyway, I'll slow down, but we're not going back to Mifflin. I don't want to be bored on Halloween, okay? The least you can do is take a drive with me."

As soon as the words were out of the girl's mouth, the older brunette moaned, "Why are we even friends?"

"You love me!" Ruby cried with a grin.

After a while, they neared the edge of town, and the buildings became fewer and farther between. Soon, they found themselves pulled over on the side of the road in front of a large, empty field.

"What are you doing?" Regina asked anxiously, looking out the window at the darkness.

"Let's go for a walk."

"Are you kidding me?"

"What? Are you scared?"

"No! Of course I'm not scared! I'm just not going for a creepy-ass walk in some random fucking field on fucking Halloween."

"Well… It's not exactly a _random _field…"

Trying to hide her smile but unable to do so, Ruby looked over into Regina's eyes.

"What. Are. You. Talking. About." Then, Regina looked around again, finally seeing the very dim lights far, far out in the field. "Oh, _Hell _no. This is _not _happening."

"Aww. C'mon, honey. I'll hold your hand and everything. We'll go quick, okay? Just a spin through the house and then home."

"Don't you fucking 'honey' me, Ruby Lucas!"

But the green-eyed brunette was ignoring her and was already stepping out of the car.

"Get back here!" Regina shouted. "We're _not-_"

"Fine. You don't wanna go? You can wait in the car. But hey… Who knows what creeps are out here tonight? Whatever, though. If you want to take your chances on your own, that's fine. I'm taking the keys with me though."

Ruby was grinning, and as soon as her friend saw it, she growled, "I'm gonna slap that grin right off your face."

"Come get me!"

With that, Ruby took off running towards the lights in the distance. Regina followed close behind but found herself breathless before Ruby had stopped. Furious and frustrated, she let out a scream and began to walk instead of run, resigning herself to her fate. Realizing that her friend had given in to her plan, Ruby stopped and waited for her to catch up, then took her hand.

"It's gonna be fine, sweetie. I'll hold your hand the whole way."

Ruby was serious, but Regina remained livid and immediately jerked away, hissing, "Don't touch me. I'm fine." After a pause, she added, "And I hate you."

Had she not been worried about leaving Regina behind, Ruby would have skipped the entire way to the haunted house, but instead, she walked slowly as her friend dragged her feet. Once they reached the house, the dark-eyed girl's face drained of color.

"Oh, fucking Hell, Ruby."

"Let's go!"

Grabbing her wrist, Ruby dragged the girl to the front door, where she forked over a handful of cash and pushed her friend inside. The first few minutes went well, with little excitement, except for some morbid but immobile decorations and skeletons. This went on for a while, with a few "boo!" sort of scares, until they reached a corner of a hallway.

"Ruby…"

"Relax. I'll go first."

Pushing past the girl, Ruby took a few confident steps around the corner and found herself facing a "blood" covered door.

"Think I should open it?" the green-eyed girl asked with a grin.

As she was turning around, though, one of the actress' in the haunted house was slowly (and silently) approaching Regina was behind. As soon as the ghost's hand touched her shoulder, she let out a blood-curdling screamed, whipped around, and gave the only reaction her body would allow: swinging her arm back, then charging it forward, making immediate contact with the actress' face.

"FUCK!" the girl playing the ghost screamed, reaching up to cover her nose, which was pouring immeasurable amounts of real blood all over her costume.

"Oh, shit!" Ruby cackled, holding her stomach as she found herself involuntarily bent over and laughing full-force. "I didn't know you knew martial arts!"

"OH, MY GOD!" Regina cried, staring at the bleeding girl in horror. "I am SO fucking sorry!"

Before she could reach out to touch the girl's bloody hand, the blonde backed into the wall, leaning her head back and continuing to attempt to stop the flow of blood. Regina's next reaction was to quickly tear off her sweater and hand it to the girl, who was wearing nothing but a thin white dress.

"Here. This should help stop the-"

"Don't!" the girl cried, sliding further along the wall away from the guest of the house. "I'm… I'm…"

Of course, she was about to say "fine," but clearly, as she collapsed on the ground, she was not. Regina immediately fell to her knees beside the girl and lifted her head off the floor, cradling it gently.

"Ruby! HELP!"

Finally, the other brunette had stopped laughing and bending down to carefully help lift the girl off the ground.

"I got her," Ruby told her friend, holding the actress bridal style, close to her chest.

They pushed their way through the rest of the haunted house without being bothered by anyone else, and once they were outside, Ruby hurried to one of the employees and set the girl down on the bench beside him as she came to.

"Holy shit," the girl groaned, her eyes fluttering open to find Regina staring at her. "You broke my fucking nose, kid!"

"I'm sorry!" Regina cried, her eyes filling with tears. "You scared the shit out of me!"

"You're not supposed to touch people," Ruby chimed in.

"You touched her, Em? John is gonna be _pissed! _They could sue you!"

"Killian! Shut _up!_" the blonde shouted. "I don't _care! _She fucking clocked me in the face!"

"I didn't mean to!"

"Well, you clocked me anyway!"

"Now, now, children," Ruby said. "I think we can settle this like adults."

"I think I should punch _her _in the face and teach her a bloody lesson."

"Emma, come on," the young man beside her interjected. "It was an accident, and technically, you started it. We're not supposed to touch the-"

"God dammit, Killian! Shut _up!_"

Ruby covered her mouth to hide the chuckle rising in her throat.

"Stop it, Ruby!" Regina scolded her friend. "It's not funny! She's hurt!"

"Yeah, _Ruby,_" Emma hissed, still holding her nose. "Your little friend here is a total psycho. I know boys who can't even punch like that."

"Wow. That's super sexist, Em," Killian jumped in.

"Oh, for fuck's sake! Piss off, would you!"

With a shrug of his shoulders, he stood up and looked at Regina, saying, "She'll get over it. She just gets really grumpy over nothing all the time."

"Look… I have an idea," Ruby told them, as the young man walked away.

"Oh, yeah, smarty pants? What's that?"

"God, girl. You really are a bitch."

"Fuck you. Who do you even think you-"

"Why doesn't my friend here take you out to a nice dinner to make it up to you?"

"With my face all black and blue from her magical martial arts? I think not."

"Wait, what?" the brunette asked anxiously. "I never said I'd-"

"Like I said," the other brunette cut in. "My friend here would absolutely love to take you out, so if you reconsider, please give her a call, okay? We'll go ahead and leave you alone now. And we're sorry about the trouble. Aren't we, Gina?"

Mouth agape as her friend scribbled her phone number on a small piece of paper and handed it to the reluctantly accepting actress, Regina nodded her head weakly and began to back away. Once they were both turned around, Ruby grabbed her arm and started to skip, causing her friend to fumble along as she was dragged close behind until they reached the vehicle.

"Ruby!"

"Yeah, yeah, buttercup," the other brunette taunted with a grin. "Just get in the fucking car."

With a huff, Regina sat down in the passenger's seat.

After a while, once she'd started to calm down, she announced, "Well. I guess I can't be too pissed at you. It's not like she'd ever call me."

* * *

"Hello?" Regina said into the phone, sounding surprised and confused by the unknown number appearing on her screen.

"Hey, psycho."

"Oh, God… Shit. Hi. I… I didn't think you'd…"

"Yeah, well. You owe me one, kid, and I'm starving."

"Oh, um… Yeah. I… Of course. Where can I take you?"

"Somewhere that serves food, preferably."

Nearly slapping herself in the face, Regina sighed and answered, "Alright. Should I come pick you up or do you want to-"

"Yeah. I'll see you at eight. I'm downtown at 157 Main Street."

"Oh… Okay. I-"

"See ya."

As soon as she realized that the blonde had ended the call, Regina lifted her eyes and turned her head to face her friend, who was standing beside her.

"Well?" she asked. "That was the chick, right? The really hot one?"

"Ruby!"

"Was it her or not?"

"Yes. But she's not-"

"No?"

"Well…"

"Did you see her fucking arm muscles?"

"If you like her so much, why didn't _you _invite her to dinner?!"

"Uh… Technically, I did."

"I meant with _you."_

"Ah, well. You're the one who hit the poor girl in the face. You owe her one. Besides, you need to get out more. You could use a damsel in distress."

"Ugh! You're impossible!"

"So when's this happening?"

"Tonight at eight, apparently."

"Cool! Good luck!"

With that, Ruby turned and walked away, leaving her friend flustered and alone in the hallway.

* * *

"Hey," Regina said nervously, as soon as the door to the apartment was opened.

"Oh, wow," Emma gaped, staring at the form-fitting black dress Regina was wearing.

"Huh?"

"You… Um… Nothing. Let's get this over with. I'm starving."

"You did say that earlier. Why didn't you eat?"

"You think I can eat on what they pay me at that place?"

"Oh… Um… I mean…"

"I'm just playing. I'm hungry all the time, no matter what."

For the first time, the blonde smiled, and it caught Regina so off guard that she forgot to turn back around and descend the stairs.

"We going or what, psycho?"

"Uh… Yeah. Sorry."

Of course, Regina, playing the role of both a lady and a gentleman, held the car door open for the other girl and shut it carefully once she was inside. When they reached the restaurant, she hurried around the other side of the car to open it once again.

"Jesus," Emma laughed. "What is this? A limousine service?"

"I, uh… No, I just…"

"Lighten up, kid. I'm just joking."

Emma nudged her arm gently, then ascended the stairs to the restaurant, which was far nicer than she'd expected.

"Damn," she commented, once the waited had left with their drink orders. "This place is… You didn't have to… I mean… I just thought we were gonna grab some grub and call it even."

"Look, I feel really bad, okay? I honestly didn't mean to hurt you. You scared the living daylights out of me is all. I truly do want to make it up to you, and I don't know how else to do that."

"Well, I guess wining and dining me is a start."

They spent the first half of the meal in silence, until Regina could stand it no longer and chose instead to engage in awkward, polite conversation.

"So… Did you work for the haunted house place last year, too?"

"Yeah. Every year since I was fifteen. I tried out and they loved me, so…"

"You must not be scared of anything."

"Ha. That's not true. I _hate _spiders. Pretty much anything else I'm good with though. Sharks… Snakes… Butterflies. You name it."

Regina laughed at this and nodded her head, replying, "That's really cool. I'm pretty much terrified of spiders too. I'm not scared of other stuff, though. I just… I startle easily."

"Apparently so."

"I really am sorry, Emma. I-"

"Listen, let it rest, okay? This meal has been amazing, and I couldn't have asked for anything more. We're more than even. Let's just leave it at that."

"Alright."

"Where do you go to school, anyway? I've never seen you at the high school here."

"I'm a senior at the private school by the edge of town."

"Ohhh. One of _those _types I see. I should've guessed. Your little friend go there too? She's got a fucking attitude problem from Hell."

"Well… She certainly is… uh… something."

"She loves you though," Emma said slowly. "I can tell. She just wanted you to be okay. You were flipping the fuck out. I was flipping the fuck out. She was just trying to settle the situation. She's also not too bad to look at."

Seeing Emma grinning at her own final comment, Regina blushed.

"Yeah, she's… She's beautiful."

"Are you, uh… Are you guys a thing?"

"What? No! No way. Ruby's… I mean, I love her, but… She drives me fucking crazy."

"I'm sure you drive her crazy too, psycho," the blonde laughed, consuming her final bite of food.

"Yeah… Probably."

"I think she's got a thing for you, at the very least."

"Are you kidding? Me? What about _you? _She thinks you're gorgeous."

There was a long pause before Emma replied, saying, "And what do you think?"

"I… Um… I…"

"It's okay. You don't have to lie. You can say I look stupid, especially with this black and blue mess all over my face."

When Emma chuckled, Regina quickly sputtered, "No. No, it's not that. I… You look… You're beautiful."

Eyebrows raised and looking surprised, the blonde leaned back in her chair and said, "You're not too shabby yourself, for a psycho." As Regina bit her lip, Emma quickly shook her head and reached across the table, placing her hand on top of the other girl's and saying, "Hey. I'm sorry. I was only playing. I don't know how to be serious. You really are beautiful."

Mouth slightly open, the brunette looked down at that hands and fought the shiver that made its way all the way down to her toes.

"I… Thank you…"

"You're not so bad, you know. I mean, when you're not hitting me in the face." Not knowing what to say or how to reply to this, Regina remained silent, so Emma continued, telling her, "I wouldn't mind seeing you again."

"What? Really?"

"Yeah. You're actually pretty sweet. So what do you think? Do I get a second date?"

"This was a date?"

"You took me to a nice restaurant and opened doors for me. Of course it was a date. Why do you think I said yes?"

"Huh?"

"You're clueless," the blonde laughed. "Let's go."

After paying the check, Regina walked the girl out to the car and once again opened the door for her. Once they reached Emma's apartment, they both seemed strangely reluctant to get out of the car.

"In all seriousness… which I hate saying… I had a really good time tonight. Thank you."

Before Emma could open the door to leave, though, Regina touched her shoulder, saying, "Wait. I… I'd like to see you again too. I'd be happy to take you wherever you want to go."

"Thanks, kid," Emma said with a playful smile. "Just bring an ice pack for me next time, yeah?"

When Regina's cheeks immediately turned red, her date leaned in, giving her cheek a quick kiss, then hurried out of the car.

* * *

"Well?" Ruby asked anxiously. "How was it?"

"It… It actually went really well."

"Yeah. AND?"

"And she said it was a date."

"Well, duh."

"And…"

"And?"

"And she said she wants another one."

"_What?_" Ruby cried, elation in her voice. "That's fucking _awesome! _I knew she was into you!"

"What the hell are you talking about? She was more hostile than a pissed off grizzly bear when we met!"

"Yeah, but she was checkin' you out _hard_, babe!"

"Oh, shut up. That's ridiculous. You're literally making that up."

"I am literally not. You're hot shit, Gina. And thanks to me, you guys are gonna be hot shit together! I _love it!_"

"Ugh. Whatever," Regina groaned in response. "Oh, shit. She's calling me. I gotta go."

"Hey," the blonde's voice came through the speaker.

"Hi."

"I forgot to ask you when this next date is happening."

"Whenever you want."

"Okay. Cool. Friday night at six? There's a football game at the high school, and I was hoping you'd come with me."

"Uh…"

A wave of relief washed over the brunette when Emma burst out laughing and said, "I'm kidding. I hate sports. Do you wanna go see a movie?"

"Um… Sure."

"Anything in particular?"

"Anything you want is fine."

"You're very accommodating."

"Well, I… I just…"

"Are you always so nervous?"

"Uh… Yeah. Pretty much."

"Maybe a little extra nervous when you're into someone?"

Regina could hear the grin spread across Emma's lips, and it made her blush as she responded, "Friday at six is fine. I can pick you up again, if you want."

"That'd be great. I'll see you then, psycho."

Before she had a chance to say goodbye, the girl had hung up the phone.

* * *

As soon as Emma opened her door, her green eyes went wide.

"I…" she started, but found the words silently falling off her tongue as she stared at the single red rose in her date's hands.

"This is for you," the beautiful brunette explained.

"But… why?"

"Because you were sweet enough to let me see you again, and I appreciate your company."

"Regina, that's… You didn't have to do that."

"I wanted to."

When they arrived at the movie theater and stood staring up at the board of movie times, Regina awkwardly shifted her weight from one foot to the other.

"It's all… horror movies or romantic comedies…" Emma commented apprehensively, looking over at her date, who was clearly anxious. "I hate romantic comedies."

"I hate horror movies…"

"Oh, come on. You're not really gonna drag me to some ridiculous RomCom are you?"

"I don't really like those either, but… I just… I hate the 'boo' moments in horror movies, you know? I can deal with the psychological thrillers and stuff, but when stuff like… pops out of places, I…"

"I'll be right next to you. Nothing bad will happen. And if you want to punch me, I'll let you this time."

"Ha-ha. Very funny."

"No, I mean it. It'll be fun."

"Emma, I…"

"Come on. Let's go."

With a sigh, Regina reluctantly followed closely behind her date as the girl purchased the tickets and led her into the theater. The first fifteen minutes of the movie went by without incident, but as soon as the first 'boo' moment happened, the brunette had to cover her mouth with one hand to keep the scream from coming out and grip the arm of the chair with the other.

Seeing this out of the corner of her eye, Emma leaned in, her lips close to the girl's ear, and whispered, "You okay?"

Regina nodded her head and continued to stare at the screen, but felt shivers slide down her neck and spine as she sensed the warmth of the girl's breath.

The movie only got more intense from there, and as soon as the blonde sensed her date's increasing anxiety, she reached over and placed her hand gently on Regina's forearm, which only caused the girl to jump in her seat and gasp in surprise.

"Sorry."

Again, Regina nodded, and Emma pulled her hand away quickly, but as soon as the next 'boo' moment happened, Regina jumped again and instinctually grabbed the girl's hand and squeezed it until the blonde nearly cried out.

"It's okay," Emma told her. "I'm right here."

By the end of the film, Regina was nearly crying from the anxiety of jumping out of her seat so many times, and when the credits began to roll, Emma immediately turned to face her.

"You okay?"

Regina nodded weakly.

"I'm sorry," Emma told her. "This was a shitty idea. I didn't realize it was going to be that scary. I was expecting it to be dumb, and… I'm sorry."

"It's… It's okay."

Back at Emma's apartment, the girls said their quiet goodbyes, but this time, Emma made no move of affection. Instead, she waited for Regina to initiate. At first, it seemed like the girl was going to walk away without saying anything more than, 'Goodnight,' but then, she reached out and gently squeezed her date's hand.

"Thank you, Emma."

"For what?"

"For letting me crush all the bones in your hand."

With a laugh, the blonde shook her head and replied, "No big deal. Knew you were a psycho all along. I was expecting it."

"Alright… Well. Thank you again. Anyway… I should get going. Have a good night, okay?"

Emma nodded, but once Regina turned to walk away, she touched the girl's shoulder, prompting her to turn back around, then said, "Regina, wait." The brunette just looked at her, so she forced herself to continue, asking, "Did I totally blow it?"

"Blow what?"

"My chances of seeing you again."

"N-No… I mean… I… I'd love to see you again."

This earned a smile from the blonde, who finally leaned in and kissed the girl's cheek.

"Call me, okay? And drive safe."

"I will."

* * *

"Emma?" Regina said into the phone, her voice shaking slightly.

"Regina? What's up? It's three in the morning."

"I can't sleep."

"The boogey man isn't gonna get you. I promise."

"I know that!" the brunette snapped. "I just…"

"I wouldn't let that happen." Regina went silent, so Emma added, "Do you want me to come over?"

"No… It's fine. I just… I just thought that… maybe… if I heard your voice… I'd be able to relax."

"Wow… Gina… That's… That's really sweet."

"It's not. It's silly."

"I think it's cute."

"I'm not-"

"Can I see you tomorrow? I know you probably have homework and stuff, but I really don't want to wait until the weekend."

"I… Of course. I'll be home around four. You can come over if you want."

"To your house?"

"Well, yeah."

"Where do you live?"

"Uh… Mifflin Street…"

"Oh, holy shit."

"What?"

"Nothing… I… That's just… Wow."

"Please, don't."

"No, it's cool. I just. I've never been in a house that big."

"It's not everything it's cracked up to be."

"Yeah. I can imagine. Getting lost every time you want to take a wiz must be horrible," Emma laughed.

"Oh, shut up. It's not _that _big."

"Anyway, I'll see you tomorrow, okay? Try to get some sleep. You'll be okay."

"Alright…"

"And Gina?"

"Yeah?"

"Call me back if you need to."

"Thanks, Emma."

"You're welcome. Goodnight, sweetheart."

The next day, when Emma knocked on the door, Regina's heart jumped into her throat as she hopped up off the couch.

"Hi," she greeted the girl, her voice cracking.

"Hey, beautiful. How you feeling?"

"I'm okay. I slept a lot better after talking to you."

With a smile, Emma replied, "I'm glad. You deserve to sleep like the angel you are."

"Oh, my God. Stop," Regina laughed.

"No way, darling."

"How can you possibly go from such a little punk to an absolute sweetheart?"

"I, uh… You… You soften me, I guess. You make me giddy. You make me want to be chivalrous."

"Emma…"

"You're special, Regina. I'm glad you punched me in the face."

With a grin, the blonde moved closer and put a hand on her date's hip.

"So, uh…"

"Yeah?"

"How are you? How was your day? Come sit down."

After following the girl to the couch, Emma answered, "I'm okay. I, uh…"

"You?"

"I thought about you all day."

"Emma, stop it. You're gonna make me permanently red."

"Good. I like making you blush."

"You're too sweet. I never would have guessed, based on the way you were flipping out when I met you."

Laughing and without thinking, the blonde put her hand on the girl's thigh, causing Regina to shiver, blush even brighter, and stare down at her hand.

"Is this okay?" Emma asked slowly, searching Regina's eyes for some kind of response or reaction.

When Regina nodded, the younger girl scooted slightly closer, until their shoulders brushed. Their hearts raced as they anticipated what might come next, until Regina finally broke the silence to ease the awkwardness of the moment.

"I'm glad your day was okay. And I'm glad you thought about me. I thought about you too."

With a smile, Emma kissed her cheek, then asked, "So what do you want to do tonight? Can I take you out? Should I order us pizza? Will you even eat pizza?"

"I'm… I'm not a big fan of greasy foods."

Laughing, the girl's companion replied, "I figured as much. You're pretty predictable. You might be a psycho, but you're also a dainty little butterfly."

"I am _not _a dainty little butterfly!"

"You definitely are. Did you see how you flipped out during the movie?"

Emma was grinning, but Regina became instantly embarrassed and looked away, mumbling, "I'm sorry."

"Hey, no… I was just… I was just teasing, honey… I didn't mean to make you feel bad…" When no response came, she added, "I'm sorry. I'm an idiot. I shouldn't have said that. It really was cute. And it got you to hold my hand…"

This was what it took to earn a small smile from the brunette, who slowly lifted her head.

"Emma…"

"Yes, love?"

"I'm glad I punched you too. And I'm glad Ruby was there."

"Yeah, seriously. There's no way I'd have been able to ask you out on my own."

"Me either. I would have wanted to, though."

"What do you see in me?"

"Huh?"

"What is it about me that you like or enjoy?"

"Well, first of all, I immensely enjoy your company. Secondly… You're gorgeous."

"Wow… I…"

"It's true. I don't know what else to say."

"You don't have to say anything…"

"No?"

"I'm not afraid of silence."

With a shy smile, Regina reached down and put her hand on top of Emma's, savoring the feeling of skin on skin.

"This is weird," Regina finally blurted out.

"What is? The silence?"

"No. This. Us. Whatever this is."

"Huh? Why?"

"Because I don't… I don't _do _this… this dating thing…"

"Listen, if you want me to go… I understand. I just-"

"No! Emma, it's not like that. I just meant… It's scary."

"It is a little scary, but I like it. I like you, Regina. A lot."

Wearing her typical blush, Regina dropped her gaze as a small smile spread over her lips.

"You're so pretty when you smile," the blonde said softly, tucking a few strands of hair behind Regina's ear to get a better look at the girl's face.

"Oh, stop. I'm-"

Emma raised her finger to her companion's lips, saying, "Shh. Just take the compliment, okay?"

Nodding weakly, the brunette continued to gaze into the girl's bright green eyes.

It took them a while to break the gaze, but when it finally happened, Regina asked, "Movie?"

"Sure."

"What do you want to watch?"

"Anything you do, dear."

Regina rolled her eyes and stood up, allowing Emma's hand to slide gently off her thigh and back down to her side.

"Alright."

Half way through the film, Regina felt her eyes growing heavy.

"You sleepy?" Emma asked with a smile, noting that the girl had suddenly gone silent.

The brunette shook her head, but yawned again and rubbed her eyes.

"Yes, you are," her companion teased, gently nudging her shoulder.

"Nuh-uh."

"Yeah huh."

"I don't know why," Regina sighed. "I had a decent sleep last night. I guess school just wore me out."

"Guess so."

"I'm really sorry. I'm such a loser."

"No, you're not. Actually… It's pretty cute…" When the girl did not reply, Emma added, "You can put your head on my shoulder… if you want…"

Simultaneously blushing and allowing a smile to curl her lips, the older girl dropped her head to the blonde's shoulder and rested it there. By the time the film was over, she was asleep. Not wanting to wake her, Emma sat as still as stone, until the girl began to squirm in her seat.

"Hey… Regina," she whispered. "Wake up. I think you're having a nightmare."

Waking with a startle, Regina's eyes snapped open.

"Jeez. That was rough."

"What happened?"

"I had a dream that I punched you in the face, and then you punched me back and walked away."

"I wouldn't walk away."

Regina blinked.

"Or punch you in the face," Emma added quickly.

"I… I know. It was just… disturbing. You were there, and then… you were gone."

"I'm not gone, though. I'm right here. Even though you punched me in the face… Psycho."

With a grin, Emma nudged the girl's shoulder again, harder that time, until Regina nearly fell over on the couch.

Suddenly, the blonde asked, "Are you ticklish?"

"What?"

"Are you ticklish?"

"No…"

"I bet you are…"

"Emma, _don't!_"

But before Regina could move away, Emma's fingertips were at her sides. Screaming and laughing hard, the brunette shoved the girl away as hard as possible, but Emma was relentless and continued to tickle her.

"Emma Swan!"

"Yes, dear?" the blonde asked with a playful grin.

"Stop! I'm gonna pee myself!"

"Oh, my God. That would be _hilarious!_" the younger girl cackled, not stopping, despite the girl's protests.

"EMMA! For fuck's sake!"

When Emma stopped suddenly, Regina looked surprised as she stared into the girl's eyes.

Finally, the blonde told her, "You're beautiful when you smile."

"Emma…"

"And I love the sound of your laugh."

Instead of tickling her, Emma's hands rested on her companion's hips, and Regina's body tingled from the sensation.

When the brunette noticed her staring at her lips, wearing a nervous smile as she said, "You can kiss me. If you want."

Heart skipping a beat, Emma leaned in and hovered her lips above Regina's.

"Are you sure?" she asked softly.

When the girl nodded, she reached up, stroked her cheek with her thumb, and pressed their lips together.

"Was… Was that okay?" Emma questioned anxiously, once they'd broken apart.

"That was perfect."

Flashing a more confident smile, Regina kissed the girl again.


End file.
